Rory McIlroy has won more than $155 million in prize money on the golf course throughout his professional career. Now the champion golfer has put at least some of those earnings into the acquisition of secondary ticketing marketplace TickPick.
McIlroy’s Dublin-based investment firm Symphony Ventures has partnered with Brighton Park Capital to collectively infuse $250 million into TickPick for a majority ownership stake of the company founded in 2011. It’s unclear how much Symphony contributed, but Brighton is likely responsible for the lion’s share, with Symphony listed as a strategic investor.
It represents the ticketing industry’s largest fundraise yet.
TickPick co-founders Brett Goldberg and Chris O’Brien are staying with the company and each retaining a significant minority stake.
TickPick’s current valuation as part of the capital raise wasn’t announced, but the $250 million investment is the first since a $40 million round in 2019. Private equity firm GreyLion, which was the primary investor five years ago, will exit as part of the Brighton Park acquisition.
The TickPick deal is the latest sports and entertainment investment for McIlroy, who, alongside Tiger Woods, is a co-founder of TMRW Sports, the $500 million parent company of the soon-to-launch golf league TGL. Through Symphony, McIlroy also has equity in adult mini-golf chain Puttery, digital tee time and membership platform GolfPass, virtual reality game Golf+, course management company Troon Golf, and wellness companies Hyperice and Whoop.
Although there are no concrete plans in place for how McIlroy or his properties could work with TickPick directly, there are a bevy of potential opportunities. “[We’re] looking forward to seeing how we can leverage his personality, and his persona in general, to boost our brand,” O’Brien tells Front Office Sports.
Golf would be a relatively new space for TickPick, which currently has sponsorship deals with the Eagles, Rams, Twins, and Spain’s LaLiga. The platform competes with other secondary ticket marketplaces such as StubHub and SeatGeek.
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